New details emerge about Paul Walker's death

Reports say the car was traveling at high speeds when it hit a tree and then slammed into a streetlight.

Actor Paul Walker was best known for his leading role in the "Fast and Furious" movie franchise.Credit: Getty

Actor Paul Walker, best known for his work in the “Fast and Furious” franchise, died in a car accident Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles, his rep confirms. He was 40 years old.

“It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide,” a statement on his Facebook page reads. “He was a passenger in a friend’s car, in which both lost their lives.”

That friend was also his business partner, Roger Rodas, who was driving a red Porsche at the time of the fatal accident. Reports say the car was traveling at high speeds when it hit a tree and then slammed into a streetlight. As his rep stated, Walker and Rodas were at an event for Reach Out Worldwide to raise aid for victims of Typhoon Haiyan. Rodas’ high-end auto shop, Always Evolving, in Valencia, Calif., held the event. According to Radar Online, the crash happened so close to the fundraiser that attendees could hear it. Tragically, one of the witnesses who rushed to the scene to help was reportedly Rodas’s 8-year-old son.

“I ran over afterwards, I was trying to find Roger’s son,” eyewitness Jim Torp told the New York Daily News. “I found out his son had jumped the fence and gone over, he was trying to get his dad out. Paul Walker’s best friend was trying to get Paul out of the car while it was still on fire. … He was trying to save his friend. … There was nothing he could do.”